By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Fans that want a sneak preview of what some of the action may look like at Purple Palooza Tuesday evening will get that chance Saturday morning following the Tennessee Tech Basketball and Cookeville Rotary Pancake Breakfast.
The Golden Eagle basketball teams will host intrasquad scrimmages following the breakfast, which is set to run from approximately 7-10 a.m. CT. And for the Tech men's squad, the timing couldn't be better.
"We're at the point in practice where we need to play some consecutive trips up the floor and play a more continuous style of basketball," head coach Steve Payne explained. "We do have a little bit of an injury bug right now, so I'm not sure that Rams [Mason Ramsey] will be out there during the scrimmage. Markell Henderson will probably still be out and Savonte Frazier will be out."
Despite the missing players from Saturday's action, there will still be plenty for the Golden Eagle fans in attendance to sink their teeth into.
"We're looking forward to getting our guys out there and playing our version of pressure," Payne said. "This will give fans a chance to see guys like Ryan Martin that they haven't seen yet. It should be a lot of fun for our guys, but at the same time, it's still a practice for us."
"This isn't going to be like our Purple Palooza scrimmage," Payne continued. "This is going to be us working and getting better. We hope a lot of people come out and enjoy it and get to see kind of what we do in some different situations."
Even with newcomers Henderson and Frazier expected to be out for the event, Tech fans will still have plenty of new faces to take in with six other players on the roster to have yet to take the court for the Golden Eagles. Included in that list are Martin, junior Hakeem Rogers, and freshmen Courtney Alexander II, Tre Hansbrough, Micaiah Henry and Conner Hall.
The cost of the breakfast is $5 in advance, with tickets available from Rotary members and Golden Eagle coaches. The cost is $6 the day of the event at the door.
Season tickets are on sale for the 2015-16 basketball season, and fans will have the opportunity to try the new seats in Eblen Center, and select the seats they wish to purchase. The season officially begins on Saturday, Nov. 7, when the women's team hosts the first of two exhibition games. The second exhibition is on Tuesday, Nov. 10, while the regular season tips off on Saturday, Nov. 14, with a doubleheader.
For ticket information, please visit or call the Athletic Ticket Office in Eblen Center at (931-372-3940).
Photo by Jim Dillon, TTU Photographer
